Glory

Transporting tea from here to the border is no easy task. While the roads around Lin'an are manageable with most sections traversable by packhorses, some rugged mountain paths require manual carrying. If bandits are encountered or unexpected situations arise, there may be losses of either tea or transporters—all of which must be factored into the cost.

"Of course, if the court handles the procurement and transportation to the border instead of us, we could lower the price by another fifty wen."

Qi Ji's eyes widened. "That cheap?"

Ye Chongming frowned.

It was important to remember that tea in this era was quite expensive.

Although tea was grown on mountain slopes without occupying farmland, commoners who cleared land would prioritize growing crops over tea. When struggling to fill their stomachs, no one would consider cultivating tea.

Moreover, unless it was a renowned tea mountain like Baiteng County, most localities lacked a Tea Monopoly Bureau. Even if someone grew tea, there would be no market for it—traveling hundreds of li to sell tea would cost more in cart fees than the profits earned.

Additionally, without modern fertilizers or pesticides, the yield from arboreal and semi-arboreal tea plants was inherently low. Warm weather invited pests, nutrients were insufficient, and an acre of tea garden produced minimal harvest.

These factors collectively drove tea prices steeply high. Even the poorest coarse tea cost several hundred wen per jin. Commoners buying tea for guests would purchase only an ounce or two at a time—let alone fine tea.

Given that this tea brick's flavor was exceptional, far surpassing coarse tea, Ye Chongming felt anything less than over ten taels per jin would be a loss. Yet Ye Yaming proposed only three to five hundred wen—astonishingly low, especially considering taxes.

"Naturally, this doesn't include tax costs," Ye Yaming added.

If the court handled unified procurement and border transportation, taxes would no longer be their responsibility, so she hadn't included them in the capital quota.

"My pricing is low for two reasons: First, this concerns border military affairs. Given its excellent flavor and affordability, the Great Jin dynasty might concede elsewhere. Second, our volume is substantial—even two hundred wen profit per jin yields significant returns. If we priced higher, profits would be excessive and might attract competitors to seize the trade. Appropriately conceding profit to the court greatly benefits us."

In this venture, Lu Guanyi and Qi Ji remained behind the scenes while the Ye family represented them. With the Ye family conducting such large annual transactions with the court, the title of Imperial Merchant was inevitable.

"Consider our vast tea gardens—how much Spring Tea do we produce yearly? That alone fills our coffers. Why fight the court over marginal gains?"

Qi Ji and Ye Chongming exchanged glances, feeling somewhat ashamed. As men, their vision and generosity fell short of Ye Yaming's.

Qi Ji, in particular, had initially advocated transporting tea to the border for the Great Jin's benefit, yet balked at the low price, worrying about profits.

"Very well, we'll proceed as you suggest," Qi Ji stated decisively.

He pointed at the tea brick on the table. "May I take this?"

Since it was intended for Lu Guanyi, the sooner, the better.

"Take it," Ye Yaming nodded.

After Qi Ji hurried off with the tea, Ye Chongming asked Ye Yaming, "Aside from that one batch, have you produced more Dark Tea since?"Ye Yaming nodded: "We produced another hundred catties last spring."

Understanding Ye Chongming's implication, she couldn't help smiling: "I'll send some cakes to your place later—you won't lack for tea to drink."

Ye Chongming laughed heartily at having his thoughts read so accurately.

Ye Yaming continued: "However, this tea improves with age. It'll taste even better after several years of storage."

Hearing that the tea had been produced the year before last, Ye Chongming grew curious: "Doesn't tea become stale and lose quality after a year? Why do you say it gets better with age?"

"Dark Tea is different from green tea. It gradually transforms over time—the longer it ages, the mellower, sweeter, and smoother it becomes, with a brighter reddish liquor."

Upon hearing this, Ye Chongming immediately wished Ye Yaming would start teaching apprentices to produce Dark Tea right away.

It was late spring turning to summer, and there were plenty of old leaves and stems left after harvesting tea buds. Rather than wasting them on mediocre coarse tea, it would be better to make Dark Tea. Whether sold to the border regions or not, their Gathering Fragrance Pavilion could offer this tea.

Of course, the price certainly couldn't be as low as before.

But Ye Yaming had just returned, and with Ye Yaqing's wedding approaching in a few days, this matter would have to wait.

On the eve of Ye Yaqing's wedding, Ye Yaming met the eldest Ye daughter, Ye Yaxiu, who had already married.

Ye Yaxiu, in her twenties, was already a mother of two. Her features were seventy percent similar to Ye Yaqing's, but their temperaments were completely different.

While Ye Yaqing was gentle and quiet, Ye Yaxiu—whether due to being the eldest daughter since childhood or her post-marriage environment—appeared more assertive. When she looked up at Ye Yaming, her gaze held a sharp, piercing intensity.

Ye Yaming studied her thoughtfully before addressing her according to the original host's memory: "Eldest Sister."

Ye Yaxiu nodded, looking Ye Yaming up and down with a faint, ambiguous smile. "After three years apart, Second Sister and I remain unchanged. But Third Sister seems transformed—more capable even than my father and grandfather. Truly remarkable."

Ye Yaming smiled faintly: "You flatter me, Eldest Sister."

Ye Yaxiu's eyebrows rose slightly.

Her words had sounded like praise but carried sarcasm. If Ye Yaming had retorted sharply, it would have seemed petty.

Instead, by modestly accepting the remark as genuine praise, she had deftly countered the jab. After years apart, this cousin had indeed become formidable.

Old Madam Ye's gaze turned sharp when she heard Ye Yaxiu's comment.

She fixed her eyes on Tao Shi.

Her eldest granddaughter Ye Yaxiu had inherited Tao Shi's nature entirely—outwardly generous but inwardly calculating. Yet however calculating, there was no reason to needle her cousin immediately upon returning.

Tao Shi must have said something to Ye Yaxiu beforehand.

Was she still dissatisfied with Ye Yaming becoming the household manager?

Noting Tao Shi's uncomfortable averted gaze, Old Madam Ye said: "Indeed she is remarkable. Without your cousin developing Dragon Well Tea into a Tribute Tea and forming connections with fifth-rank officials and nobles in the capital, how could our family enjoy such prestige? Enough for esteemed families like the Xies to seek marriage alliances. In my opinion, regarding Qing'er's marriage, you and your daughters from the eldest branch should thank Ming'er."

At these words, both Tao Shi and Ye Yaxiu's expressions changed.As for Ye Yaqing, she had secured a marriage alliance with the Xie family through Ye Yaming's betrothal, and upon learning that Ye Yaming's engagement was actually "baseless," she had been tormented by guilt and distress.

"Brother Shen!"

"Hmm!"

While walking on the road, Shen Changqing would occasionally encounter acquaintances, exchanging greetings or nods with them.

Yet, regardless of who it was,

everyone's face bore no superfluous expression, as if they were utterly indifferent to everything.

To this,

Shen Changqing had grown accustomed.

Because this was the Demon Suppression Division, an institution tasked with maintaining the stability of Great Qin, with its primary duty being the slaying of demons, monsters, and supernatural entities—though it also handled some secondary responsibilities.

It could be said

that every person in the Demon Suppression Division had their hands stained with copious amounts of blood.

When one had witnessed life and death too often, they would inevitably grow indifferent to many things.

When Shen Changqing first arrived in this world, he found it somewhat unsettling, but over time, he grew accustomed to it.

The Demon Suppression Division was vast.

Those who could remain in the Demon Suppression Division were either formidable experts or individuals with the potential to become such experts.

Shen Changqing belonged to the latter category.

Within the Demon Suppression Division, there were two main roles: one was the Garrison Envoy, and the other was the Demon Subduing Envoy.

Anyone who entered the Demon Suppression Division started as a low-level Demon Subduing Envoy,

then advanced step by step, with the ultimate goal of becoming a Garrison Envoy.

Shen Changqing's predecessor had been a probationary Demon Subduing Envoy in the Demon Suppression Division—the lowest rank among the Demon Subduing Envoys.

Possessing the memories of his predecessor,

he was also very familiar with the environment of the Demon Suppression Division.

Without taking much time, Shen Changqing stopped in front of a pavilion.

Unlike the other solemn and murderous areas of the Demon Suppression Division, this pavilion stood out like a crane among chickens, exuding an unusual tranquility amidst the pervasive bloodshed of the division.

At that moment, the pavilion's door was wide open, with people occasionally entering and exiting.

After only a brief hesitation, Shen Changqing stepped inside.

Upon entering the pavilion,

the atmosphere abruptly changed.

A scent of ink, mingled with a faint trace of blood, assailed his senses, causing him to instinctively frown, though his expression soon relaxed.

The bloody odor that clung to everyone in the Demon Suppression Division was nearly impossible to wash away completely.